They came to celebrate poetry and the poet. They recited their works, written in different Indian languages, and the works of the person to honour whom they had reached the Kerala capital. A free flow of poetry was the highlight on the third day of the celebrations to mark the 84th birthday of poet O.N.V. Kurup.
The day began with film-maker Lenin Rajendran inaugurating a photo exhibition on the life of ONV titled ‘Evideyum enikkoru veedund’ (I have a home everywhere). Bengali writer Prabolkumar Basu released a Bengali translation of ONV’s poems. Kannada poet Sumatindra Nadik, Sugathakumari, Mangalesh Debral, Erode Thamizhanpan, Jayaprabha, and A.J. Thomas recited poems, which were translated into Malayalam and presented by poet V. Madhusoodanan Nair, M. Chandrasekharan Nair, and B. Hariharan. Singer Abhraditha Banerjee sang a Bengali translation of one of ONV’s poems, after receiving the first copy of the text from writer Pirappancode Murali.
Earlier, welcoming the gathering, poet Prabha Varma said ONV was never a Malayali poet, but an Indian poet writing in Malayalam.
In a written message read out at the function, ONV thanked the poets who had come from different parts of the country to greet him, but rued his inability to be in their midst.
